Expo City Dubai To Host “Hai Ramadan” Festival In 2023

The iconic Expo City Dubai will be coming back to life during the month of Ramadan this year. The city is set to host the “Hai Ramadan” festival scheduled to run throughout the month of Ramadan celebrating the holy month and also having events such as a night market.

Announcing the new event, Amna Abulhoul, the Executive Creative Director at Expo City Dubai said that “Just like the Expo City brought the whole world together during the Expo 2020 Dubai mega event, the city will bring together all the different communities living in the United Arab Emirates during the holy month of Ramadan with the “Hai Ramadan” festival.

Expo City Ramadan Festival to Last over 50 Days, to Become a Place to Enjoy Traditions and Cultures

The festival is scheduled to begin on March 3, 2023, which is the weekend before the “Haq Al Laila” celebrations, a traditional night that is celebrated in the United Arab Emirates that marks the start of preparations for the month of Ramadan arriving two weeks from then.

The “Hai Ramadan” festival will end on April 25, 2023, running for over 50 continuous days.

The festival will offer visitors a chance to experience Ramadan traditions from all around the world, try a wide variety of food and beverages from all around the world that people enjoy especially during Ramadan times, and also reflect on the sense of fulfillment of fasting and breaking the fast.

The festival area will also have dedicated prayer areas for Muslim worshippers and will also organize Isha prayer, followed by Taraweeh prayers and also Tahajjud prayers.

After completing the Taraweeh, there will also be “Hakawati” sessions, which will replicate the ancient Arabic art where storytellers would entice the audience by narrating adventurous stories, folktales, and other stories that help evoke the sense of morality, culture, and faith for the religion in one’s mind.

The Expo City Dubai will also have its own “Misaharati”, which refers to a tradition wherein designated figures would sing and play the drums to wake up the people within the community typically before dawn to take part in “Suhoor” and drink water in preparation for the day of fasting that lies ahead.

The Al Wasl Plaza, which is the large dome-shaped structure that was a key attraction during the Expo 2020 Dubai event, will have scheduled theatrical family-friendly shows that will feature the official mascots of the Expo 2020 Dubai, Rashid, and Latifa.

There will also be workshops and games for children of all ages wherein the participants will be able to learn about the Emirati culture, Ramadan traditions, and values that are the essence of the month of Ramadan such as compassion, kindness, and generosity.

Special consideration will also be given to promoting healthy living during the month of Ramadan during the events that happen in Expo City Dubai. Sports tournaments, fitness and wellness activities, game activities that require physical activity, etc. will be conducted within the Expo City for people of all ages and activity levels.

Entry to the Expo City during the “Hai Ramadan” festival, access to the shows at Al Wasl Plaza, and the sports activities that will be conducted are all free of cost to enter and participate. However, there will be certain games and workshops, which will have a paid entry.

The will also be an active and vibrant night market within the Expo City that will showcase a variety of products including clothes, gifts, perfumes, food items, and more.

The “Hai Ramadan” festival will take place between 04:00 PM and 10:00 PM during the days before Ramadan, and during the holy month, the festival will take place between 05:00 PM and 02:00 AM.

The Expo City Dubai was constructed to host the Expo 2020 Dubai mega event, under the guidance of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and the Ruler of Dubai.

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With participation from 192 countries, several international organizations, and a footfall that exceeded 24 million people, the Expo was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience different cultures, know more about countries less known, and see people from all around the world gather in a single place. The Expo City was closed temporarily after the finale of the mega event. 

Following the temporary closure, the Expo City was reopened to the public on September 1, 2022, with access to two of the pavilions: The “Alif” Mobility Pavilion and the “Terra” Sustainability Pavilion.

Even though attractions such as the Al Wasl Plaza and the cascading waterfall were free to enjoy, visitors would require to buy tickets to access the pavilions. Within the pavilions that remain, visitors also got a chance to see various items such as exhibits, musical instruments, sculptures, etc. that were left within the Expo City as memorabilia by the countries that took part in the mega event.

Since reopening, the Expo City has showcased several events for the public, including a free open-air movie screening, and also hosted the 22nd edition of the Dubai Marathon.